Gaming Roundup 9/3/08: Sex, Drugs, and Heroism

We've all been there: you're softly striding through a craggy cavern, imperceptibly thin rays of light squeezing their way through cracks in the ceiling. Your eyes pierce through the black just in time for you to notice a vaguely cylindrical enemy galloping your way. Steel clangs against claws and fangs, and your foe slumps to the ground. A thick liquid oozes from the beast's mangled form, but the scent of blood is curiously absent. You decide to take a closer look, and dab your fingers in the liquid. One tentative lick later, you realize what the cave-dweller was dispensing -- the smooth taste of Coca-Cola! Visibly excited, you bottle up a sample. And with that, it's quest complete. Time to head back to Doct R. Peppyre's place for your brand new, Sunkist-orange tabard. Awesome!

But then, while emerging from the cave, you spot a poster on a nearby tree. Turns out, it's a blatant ad for McDonald's. "What the hell?" You wonder aloud. Then, sense of immersion annihilated, you rage-quit the game.

Obviously, the above situation is completely ludicrous. In-game advertising is never so out-of-place or in-your-face. And, in a fairly roundabout way, that's the point I'm trying to make: in-game advertising isn't as bad as gamers seem to think. Given a decent context, true-to-life ads can even make a game more immersive, while also putting extra cash into publishers' pockets.

But what's your take? Are in-game ads a detriment to your experience, or is Human Billboard your favorite race/class combination?

Well, today's Roundup is loyal only to you, fair reader, but could use some extra money and aims its commentary straight at the pleasure center of your brain. Inside, you'll find the latest news on a public E3, the oft-delayed Firefly MMO, EA's secret plans, and more.

“On that board are deals that we’ve contemplated, deals that we would like to make in the future, deals that we have in progress," said EA's David DeMartini. "It’s one big, kind of covered-in-cloth status board. We just keep track of what’s going on in various places in the world. Who’s signed with who. When such-and-such company might be available or free from an encumbrance that they might have with another publisher.”

While DeMartini wouldn't allow a soul to strip search his beautiful board, he wasn't afraid to throw out a few hints -- mostly concerning Japanese developers.

"If EA was to work with some of the best designers in Japan in a limited way, with a limited number of these partners, we would be creating a unique situation where some of the best developers in Japan are actually partnering with one of the largest publishers that are not Japanese. That would represent something that is slightly uncomfortable for both parties, but also represents something that is very unique and very special.”

Since Japan's taste in gaming is currently stuck in the mid-to-late 90's -- with nary a DeLorean in sight -- EA's Partners program is probably starting to look mighty appetizing to many floundering publishers. But do they have the scratch to hang with EA? And, more importantly, will their stubborn pride allow them to slip into bed with a non-Japanese company?

Remember them now? Well, they're back -- without actually having gone anywhere -- with another MMO yanked from Joss Whedon's archives.

"The ground-breaking MMOG will offer a new experience for gamers, allowing them to play it either as a fully immersive 3D environment or as a Flash-based 2D game, where both types of players can interact. The game will be launched within 'Multiverse Places,' a new social virtual world from Multiverse. Currently under development, Buffy will go into beta testing later this year."

Are you sure it's going to be a beta? Are you sure it won't be a "nothing"?

Comments

I am playing FEAR Perseus Mandate at the moment and ran across a cute add by Alienware selling their Pcs. In the game you go up to their computer which shows active when you get close and hit the use key to get in game story from a person that supposedly left a message. Also I found a XPS Dell! This type of add is smart and fun at the same time. If they use their heads like this in using adds I would almost look forward to seeing them and maybe even post them in the Game Arena....like hey did you see what game company X did in the latest game for adds that added to the fun in playing the game! I don't feel like going out to buy an Alienware or Dell Pc at the moment but with some one else ya never know!

If the adds are blatent I would ignore the new games and be happy plying my old games over...Baldurs Gate anyone?

I have every console known to man except for a few obscurities like the Jaguar or the FM Towns...

I just wanted to say I can remember seeing an ad in a game maybe back in the Sega Genesis days it was the greatest thing since sliced bread...

I think it was on a bilboard for a namco game and we were all like. "did you see that"That was cool, and we would look for it again and again.

it was cool and still is unless it is out of place or just in your face.

Remember guys.

Everything in moderation.

If the Ad is the thing that helps the developer get the game on the shelf and of course allows us gamers to play it, then I am all for it. if it's just a way to make some rich guy an extra buck then, well you all know the deal about that.

agreed. I'm all for in-game advertising if it will mean the companies pushing the ads are helping pay for the development of the games, and therefore lead to games costing less. Or, have 2 different versions: one that's cheap and has ads, or you can opt to pay more and get an ad-less game.

Bad enough you can't turn around without hitting an advertisement on the Web. Why aren't these advertisers paying ME RENT for taking up MY screen space! This is worse than the product-placement epidemic in the movies! Bad enough a movie ticket costs $8, a courtesy cup of soda costs $4(!!) and the $6 kid-size container of popcorn contains enough salt and fat to bring down an elephant! is NOTHING SACRED ANYMORE!!!

Paying rent for your screen space? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Maybe you should have to pay a website before you can download any one of its pages. How would you like that? Your using THEIR bandwidth and server load, which is not free. If it wasn't for ads most free websites wouldn't exist.

After playing 30 some hours of enemy territories quake wars, I think the advertizing is fine. I don't even notice it. if you hadn't told me, i wouldn't have even known. I think the level that it is in quake is fine. I don't think that it sould increase beyold that, but it is fine with me as it is.